Examining factors impacting exercise adherence in older adults

The older people are generally considered as a higher-risk population for poorer physical activity levels and exercise engagement. Identifying simple, easy to follow recommendations to improve exercise participation is a focus of the current researchers associated with this project. Motivation is widely recognized as a critical factor influencing people's engagement with exercise. However, it is often treated as a generalised concept, with limited research exploring specific components that might impact how motivation alters engagement with exercise. Time-based factors—such as the temporal aspects of exercise and reward—has yet to be fully examined in relation to motivation and exercise participation. A previous study (https://osf.io/8ceb6/overview) sought to explore the possible links between temporal factors and exercise adherence among older adults. This study is an extension of the previous study and investigates the possible mechanisms through which time and motivation influence exercise adherence. The primary aim is to explore and identify time-related factors which may serve as potential mechanisms in predicting older adults' readiness to adhere to age-based national exercise recommendations.